Commissioners Tim McCormick, Randy Wharton and Orphy Klempa approved granting money from the hotel-motel tax fund to the competition, slated for Sept. 7 in Wheeling. The annual event typically kicks off at the Sonneborn Shelter on Wheeling Park Road. During the competition, participants fling a small metal ball down the road in an attempt to beat others to the finish line.

McCormick noted that although the event has been in place for three years in Wheeling, this is the first time its organizers have asked county officials for money.

"It's the largest in the state of West Virginia. There are other counties now copying what this group does," he said.